T61p - Vista - CPU runs hot 90C then throttles down to 798

[Mr. Goodbar]

This is a recent problem with my year-old T61p. In short, I've noticed it gets very slow after running for a few hours. After some research with CPU-Z, I can see that the CPU speed drops from 2.4GHz (T7700 CPU) to 798MHz and stays there until I reboot. (All profiles (BIOS + Windows Power Control) at "Max Performance" when running under AC power; I always use it with a docking station.)

While the machine runs at its normal speed(around 2.4GHz, though up to 2.6GHz under stress) and the CPU temp at idle is 85C and when running at 100% goes up to 95C. The fan is always running at around 3000-3200 RPM (data from TPFanControl). I'm running Vista 64 with Aero enabled (GPU temp runs between 80-100C). Any advice? I've read on other forums that opening it up and cleaning out dust might help. Should I try this? Thanks.

[craigmontHunter]

Cleaning it out would probably help a lot. Another thing to try is to enable the adaptive power setting for the CPU, it does not affect performance, and it saves power and runs cooler. Cleaning it is probably the best way though.

Good luck

[craigmontHunter]

Forgot to mention, try blowing it out through the fan opening with a quick burst of compressed air (quick, to prevent the fan from overspinning), and if that does not work, take off the keyboard and see what there is.

[Mr. Goodbar]

Since my OP I've been having some success with a combination of ThinkpadFanControl on "Smart 1" mode and RMClock throttling. TPFC keeps the temp under 90C and RMClock does a nice job throttling the frequency. So far, so good.

[davidhbrown]

I don't suppose Lenovo has ever sent someone out to "fix" your computer? I've had my main board replaced twice now (once for a failed HDD controller and second time for an issue that actually turned out to be the TurboMemory module). Recently, I picked up a copy of Torchlight (a game) and it was shutting down on me. Turned out the GPU was getting up to 100C and the CPU cores were pretty hot, too. That seemed to be well above what other people with GPU thermal issues were reporting, so I ordered a kit of Arctic Silver 5 and their cleaners.

Well, when I finally got around to disassembling things, I found that the last tech had put about probably a cubic centimeter of thermal compound on the CPU and almost none on the GPU. The compound on the CPU was so thick it extended beyond the die for several millimeters!

So, I cleaned things up and put on a reasonable amount of compound -- I didn't do the sometimes-recommended spreading with a razor because the surfaces of the heat-pipe aren't particularly smooth. The CPU cores now run typically at 42C, GPU at 63C (docked, Aero, dual-monitors) and peak at around 70-75C CPU, 80-90C GPU (more typically, 80C in-game). It's not wonderful, especially the idle GPU temp, but I can live with it.

So, if you have the mechanical aptitude, an anti-static mat/strap, and the willingness to really take things apart, you might want to give this a try. My temps went down about 10C and Arctic suggests that they might go down a bit further as the compound breaks in.

(Running Win 7 x64, I haven't found that I can control fans with the various utilities, just monitor temps.)

[Mr. Goodbar]

My computer has been repaired once, about six months ago, when I sent it in for service after a coffee spill fried the motherboard. Until I started running ThinkPadFanControl my GPU temperature was often hitting 100C as well. These days it hovers around 64C, with the CPU at 62C idle and up to 90C under load. Putting some better thermal paste on the CPU would probably help..but for the time being I'm taking a wait-and-see approach. Thanks for sharing your experience.

[sktn77a]

There ain't no free lunch. NHC is a band-aid for the real problem. Clean out the fan and heatsink area and all the air intake/exhaust locations, and make sure you have the proper heatpad or a thin smear of thermal paste for the CPU and GPU. Right now your using a T61p and gettin R50 performance!